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South Dakota to pay $242,000 in fees to lawyers, gay rights group
The US state of South Dakota on Friday agreed to pay US$242,000 to attorneys who challenged the state’s ban on same-sex marriages last year prior to the landmark decision by the US Supreme Court in June this year which allows same-sex couples to marry nationwide.
Attorney Josh Newville of Minneapolis-based firm Madia Law sued the state on behalf of six same-sex couples, challenging the state’s gay marriage ban and its refusal to recognize marriages of same-sex couples who had legally married in other states.
US District Court Judge Karen Schreier ruled in the couples’ favor in January, but put her decision on hold pending appeals.
A federal appeals court affirmed the court’s ruling in August which allowed attorneys to proceed with their plan to seek legal fees from the state.
Under federal law, attorneys in federal civil rights cases can petition a court to award them legal fees if a court finds in their favor.
According to the Argus Leader, about US$182,000 will go to Minneapolis firm Madia Law and about US$59,000 to the National Center for Lesbian Rights that provided additional legal counsel in the case.
The funds would likely come from the state’s extraordinary litigation fund and not from the attorney general’s office as the office isn’t responsible for paying for challenges to the state constitution or state laws, said Sara Rabern, the spokeswoman for Attorney General Marty Jackley.
Newville was quoted as saying, ‘What this case was really about was people’s rights and treating people equally.’
‘You can’t put a dollar amount on the indignity and the harm of not treating people equally,’ he said.
The post South Dakota to pay $242,000 in fees to lawyers, gay rights group appeared first on Gay Star News.
Sylvia Tan
www.gaystarnews.com/article/south-dakota-to-pay-242000-in-fees-to-lawyers-gay-rights-group/
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